Do It Yourself

Most Topular Stories

Resilient flooring, like vinyl, cork, rubber or something similar, is a wonderful flooring choice for commercial businesses. Any Las Vegas resilient flooring inspector will tell you that the reason that resilient flooring is a popular choice for the workplace is that it is long lasting and easy to care for. Resilient flooring is generally comprised of vinyl, linoleum, cork or rubber, and it is noted for being both springy and sturdy If you considering resilient flooring for your business or office space, or if this type of flooring is already installed at the workplace, you can look forward…

God's Eyes are composed of yarn woven. around two crossed sticks. Artist Jay Mohler takes these usually simple crafts to a whole new level Read more on MAKE The post These Aren’t the God’s Eyes You Made at Summer Camp appeared first on Make: DIY Projects, How-Tos, Electronics, Crafts and Ideas for Makers.

Randy King needed to update an older kitchen in order to help sell his house. Here is his story. Be sure to check out the photos below. "Rehab of a 1950's ranch. We wanted to add some wow to our project, and we know the best place to do that is in the kitchen, so we did. AND it really helps to have some wow features around it as well like the tapered columns. That was a real head-scratcher - how to cut the taper AND the miter for each board at the same time. I ended up using a square sacrificial board that I screwed to the column board at the right angle for each cut. Each sacrificial…

If you&rsquo;re trying to create a distressed shabby chic look on a piece of furniture or home d&eacute;cor, you can get it done easily and with little effort. Here&rsquo;s how. Making Preparations Use your sandpaper to refine any deep marks or imperfections that you don't want on the piece you're distressing. Wipe any residue off of the wood with a cleaning cloth. Use your paintbrush to apply a base coat of chalk paint to the wood. Give the paint enough time to dry completely. Applying the Vaseline and Top Coat When the base coat paint is dry, use your fingers...

Notes deliver feeling much better in the shape of a heart! This is especially great for a friend, a Valentine, or your significant other. To fold a note into a heart, follow these step-by-step instructions. Steps Fold a piece of rectangular paper in half lengthwise. A colored piece of paper will look nicest, but if yours is blank, you can always decorate it later. Repeat the fold. Fold the paper in half lengthwise a second time, bringing the top edge down to the bottom. Flip it over. Flip the paper over vertically so that the long, open end faces upwards. You should now be able to unfold the…

Resilient flooring, like vinyl, cork, rubber or something similar, is a wonderful flooring choice for commercial businesses. Any Las Vegas resilient flooring inspector will tell you that the reason that resilient flooring is a popular choice for the workplace is that it is long lasting and easy to care for. Resilient flooring is generally comprised of vinyl, linoleum, cork or rubber, and it is noted for being both springy and sturdy If you considering resilient flooring for your business or office space, or if this type of flooring is already installed at the workplace, you can look forward…

When it comes to flooring, few materials are as highly desirable as resilient flooring. Whether there is vinyl, luxury vinyl tile, cork, rubber, linoleum or something similar at the workplace, you can rest assured that you’ve got one of the most durable and classy looking types of flooring on the market. However, like all flooring, you can encounter some problems with bad installation, wear and tear and other things that may make the resilient flooring a hazard to foot traffic. A Salt Lake City resilient flooring inspector can be the best place to turn when it comes to ensuring that the…

If you are the owner of a Cheyenne office, factory, warehouse, hotel, clinic, storefront or some kind of multi-use building, you should be aware of slip and fall accidents at work. Injuries from slip and fall accidents are costing business owners across Wyoming a lot of money. The good news is that the risk of a slip and fall accident at your workplace can be minimized when you hire a Cheyenne resilient flooring inspector. About Cheyenne Resilient Flooring Inspectors A properly licensed and certified Cheyenne resilient flooring inspector will do a thorough job at investigating all the…

What business owner doesn’t want to provide his or her employees with a safe and secure environment in which to work? While you may be focusing on machinery, fire alarms and evacuation plans, there’s one hazard you may be missing—the flooring! From Wyoming offices, hotels, stores, factories, storefront, factory or an entire multi-use building, it’s important to minimize the risks of slips, trips and falls. The good news is that you can hire a flooring inspector who is properly licensed and certified to investigate all the flooring at your facility. Unfortunately, thousands of slip and…

Resilient flooring is a top choice for material used at the workplace for several reasons. This beautiful and durable flooring surface lives up to its name by providing some give, that is ideal for those who must stand on their feet all day long. Examples of resilient flooring include vinyl, rubber and cork, among others. Resilient flooring is also ideal because it doesn’t wear easily and is a snap to clean. So why would you need an Idaho resilient flooring inspector? There are several questions you might have about the flooring and walkways at work, especially when it comes to resilient…

God's Eyes are composed of yarn woven. around two crossed sticks. Artist Jay Mohler takes these usually simple crafts to a whole new level Read more on MAKE The post These Aren’t the God’s Eyes You Made at Summer Camp appeared first on Make: DIY Projects, How-Tos, Electronics, Crafts and Ideas for Makers.

Master drone maker Olivier C makes a quadcopter version of the Incom T-70 X-Wing from the forthcoming Star Wars film. Read more on MAKE The post Impressive Star Wars X-Wing Foam Drone appeared first on Make: DIY Projects, How-Tos, Electronics, Crafts and Ideas for Makers.

SirKeyboardCommando built his own gladiator sword using modern tools and heat treating methods that have been refined throughout the ages. Read more on MAKE The post This Gladiator Sword Would Make Any Roman Proud appeared first on Make: DIY Projects, How-Tos, Electronics, Crafts and Ideas for Makers.

Join the Maker Faire Street Team and earn two free tickets to the 2015 World Maker Faire New York Read more on MAKE The post Free Tickets to Maker Faire New York: Join the Street Team appeared first on Make: DIY Projects, How-Tos, Electronics, Crafts and Ideas for Makers.

Randy King needed to update an older kitchen in order to help sell his house. Here is his story. Be sure to check out the photos below. "Rehab of a 1950's ranch. We wanted to add some wow to our project, and we know the best place to do that is in the kitchen, so we did. AND it really helps to have some wow features around it as well like the tapered columns. That was a real head-scratcher - how to cut the taper AND the miter for each board at the same time. I ended up using a square sacrificial board that I screwed to the column board at the right angle for each cut. Each sacrificial…

DEAR TIM: My new home is under construction. I'm in a disagreement with my builder about what's going to happen under my garage slab. Right now there's a trench around the inside on all four walls where they had to dig to install the foundation. The center of the garage area is undisturbed dirt and rock that's been there since the dinosaurs roamed. My builder says he's just going to fill it in with the dirt he dug out and all will be well. I think that's a mistake. What should be done? If he does use the dirt is there a special way to install it? Are there other things that can be done? What…

Welcome if you're a new subscriber. Each week, the blue AsktheBuilder.com word above (in the email version of this newsletter) is a SECRET link to a past column or video that will save you TIME AND MONEY. CLUE: Can you install a new floor in half a day? Go back up and click that link. Today is the flight of the bumblebees! The last Sunday in July is a fun ham radio contest where the point is to operate outdoors from a remote location. I'm hoping the weather cooperates as I'll be going out between 1 and 5 p.m. here in New Hampshire. I'll be hanging around 14.060 MHZ doing Morse code. My call…

Clare Horvath and her husband live in Newtown, CT. She wants to tile over her acrylic shower base. Read what she sent me: "We have a shower stall that the previous owner added an acrylic floor to. It does not flex and appears to be very solid. Can I tile it? Here's Clare's shower base. As you can see the floor is irregular and has slanted sides. I took my picture to a local tile store and the man said no, that I would need to remove it if I wanted to tile it. He also kept asking me what was I going to do with the small ledge where it meets the tiles. I said I would figure something…

Patricia Whitworth has a few leaking skylights in her Hernando, FL home. Here's what she sent to me. I assume since she's so brief she's running around looking for a mop and bucket: "Skylights leak. How can we permanently remove them? How to cover up hole in inside ceiling?" Here's my suggestion: Patricia, are you sure you want to take this radical approach? What if I told you I've installed hundreds of skylights over the years and NONE of them have leaked, even in fierce wind-driven rainstorms? I've used Velux Skylights for decades and had them on several houses I've lived in including…

If you&rsquo;re trying to create a distressed shabby chic look on a piece of furniture or home d&eacute;cor, you can get it done easily and with little effort. Here&rsquo;s how. Making Preparations Use your sandpaper to refine any deep marks or imperfections that you don't want on the piece you're distressing. Wipe any residue off of the wood with a cleaning cloth. Use your paintbrush to apply a base coat of chalk paint to the wood. Give the paint enough time to dry completely. Applying the Vaseline and Top Coat When the base coat paint is dry, use your fingers...

Some things look better with time, don't they? In fact, just one piece of shabby chic, rustic-looking furniture can really help to transform a room into whatever look you're going for, whether that be a cozy country feel, or an elegant period room full of antiques. To get started all you need is a piece of furniture, some paint, and a little sandpaper. Step 1: Choose Your Paint Colors Before you paint your piece of furniture, you'll need to choose your paint colors. For the base you'll need a lighter color (this is the part that will peek through when...

A dry atmosphere can be any homeowner&rsquo;s worst enemy. Air inside a home that's too dry can lead to an increase in allergies, dry skin, itchy eyes, and a general uncomfortable feeling for anyone who steps inside the home. While buying a humidifier is the obvious solution, they can be expensive, and keeping them running throughout the day and evening can create a spike in utility bills. Luckily, there are alternatives to keep the air inside your home moist throughout the year without breaking your budget. Houseplants One way to add moisture to the air inside a home is to...

Shabby chic is like stepping into a time warp. A cross between the past and the present. It is a mix between antique pieces and new pieces made to look antique. Once you do one room, it kind of escapes out into the rest of the house until you are swallowed up in beautiful, timely pieces that flow throughout. The Adventure Begins Transforming your home into a shabby chic style is fun and a good way to upcycle -- especially if you enjoy flea markets and garage sales. The adventure comes in your imagination. What can you find at a...

Chalk paint is the new way to achieve a vintage, aged, or rustic look when painting your indoor furniture projects. The nice thing about it is that it doesn't take much fuss at all. Rather than spending all that time sanding and sealing, painting, and using fancy techniques to achieve an old fashioned look for your furniture, chalk paint can make all the difference in no more than two coats. Read on to find out where to get it, how it works, and how to use it to its full potential. What Is Chalk Paint? The difference between chalk paint...

Notes deliver feeling much better in the shape of a heart! This is especially great for a friend, a Valentine, or your significant other. To fold a note into a heart, follow these step-by-step instructions. Steps Fold a piece of rectangular paper in half lengthwise. A colored piece of paper will look nicest, but if yours is blank, you can always decorate it later. Repeat the fold. Fold the paper in half lengthwise a second time, bringing the top edge down to the bottom. Flip it over. Flip the paper over vertically so that the long, open end faces upwards. You should now be able to unfold the…

Being verbose is usually a poor method of communication, droning on in pompous persistence. While a bit of the ol' pleonasm is a terrible idea if you're trying to impress a potential employer, keeping a few recondite words at your disposal can be a great defense against the pedantry of others. If you want to turn off all your interlocutors, you can learn the skills necessary to be long-winded, pompous, and overblown. Channel your Polonius and learn to be verbose. Steps Being Long-Winded Start speaking without a clear idea of where you’re going. Warren G. Harding, grandiloquent speaker and…

Whether your hair is relaxed or natural, detangling takes patience and a gentle touch. Water, thick conditioner, and your own fingers will all help you separate knots and tangles without causing damage. Steps Detangling African Hair Section your hair. Using your fingers, divide your hair into convenient sections. If you have long hair, twist it into four or more sections. If you have shorter hair, use hair clips instead. Either way, treat your hair as gently as possible. Although working with sectioned hair takes longer, it greatly reduces the amount of tangling that can happen. Wash your…

This article will show you how to hack a servo so that you can read the analog signal coming out of it. This will let you track the voltage of the servo when it is rotated. Steps Open up the servo. Unscrew the screws at the base of the servo. Make sure to use an appropriate screw driver, often size #00. Keep the servo flat on the table and handle with care. Picking it up could cause the front side to fall off, spilling gears. Don’t take out the gears unless you’re sure you can reverse engineer and put them back. Identify the variable resistor (trimpot). This is the resistor with three…

Whether you're trying to find your lost kitten, advertise your guitar lessons or promote your band's gig this Friday, a flyer can be a cheap and effective way to get the word out. In order for your flyer to work, first you have to get people to notice it. Next, you want them to do something about it. This article will help you accomplish both! Steps Sample Flyers Sample Lost Dog Flyer Sample Business Flyer Sample Event Flyer Making Your Own Flyer Write a headline. Make it simple, and make it big! The headline should be no more than five words, fit in one line across the page, and be centered.

We all complain about being short on space but imagine squeezing your life into a tiny space, then heading out to sea! Houseboat dwellers can teach all of us a thing or two about capitalizing on every square inch. Here are just a handful of creative ideas you can borrow, build on, or copy wholesale—whatever floats your boat!

Buying stuff is fun—but spending money on items to sort and corral all that stuff? Less fun. The good news: Sturdy, useful, and very stylish storage can be yours for free if you know where to look and have a tiny bit of DIY spirit. So, if you’ve got a crowded house and a lack of cash, steal these 9 incredibly creative ideas for no-budget organizers.

Adding Surge Protection To Computer and Entertainment Circuits We live in an electronic gadget age that sees most of us spending significant money on the gadgets that make our lives more enjoyable. Many of us have a home computer network, home entertainment, and even home automation all powered by... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Wrangler® RIGGS WORKWEAR® I spend a lot of time either on construction sites as a project manager or working around my own home doing all kinds of projects including a recent basement renovation. Finding comfortable, durable work clothing is very important to me and something that I think about... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Repairing an Underground Dog Fence Of all the home improvement projects tackled in the past 5 years the most useful one has been the underground dog fence. It’s a low voltage loop of wire that runs the complete perimeter of the yard. We can just open the sliding glass door on the deck and... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

New DESIGNRAIL Colors: “Express Yourself By Feeney” DESIGNRAIL Feeney DESIGNRAIL is a complete railing system for residential and light commercial spaces that make a bold statement. Sleek, modern, and functional; Feeney DESIGNRAIL is the perfect choice for contractors, designers, and homeowners who... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Getting Your Home Ready To Sell Nine years ago I bought my first home and had all of my college buddies move in. It was awesome. We slapped a little paint on the walls and set up a big TV for sports and video games. That was the end of my project list. Then I got married.… The post Getting... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Love this $150 bathroom redesign from Earnest Home Co.The evolution of a room over five years. Interesting!A cute craft for the kiddosThese really are pretty free fontsOfficially on my list of places to visitCold meals for hot nightsThis plywood storage bench is so clever!A gorgeous modern farmhouseA charming summer cottage. Photo by Tia Borgsmidt.

Single Hung TransomEarlier this summer, I stayed in a beautiful home which had many outstanding architectural features. The ones which stood out to me were the transom windows, like this one featured in the little nook in the upstairs hallway. Transoms are small windows which can be hung over windows, doors, or open passageways.Over the last few years, it seems bloggers have been focused on adding texture and traditional character into their new homes. Shiplap walls, planks, board and batten, beadboard, picture moulding... walls have been getting all the attention! I feel like its only a…

A dreamy Brooklyn brownstoneThis looks deliciousWhen HandyMan was a child, he lived on a houseboat in San Francisco. Cool, right? I wouldn't mind living on a houseboat if it looked like this.Indigo sells furniture now?!Brilliant tips on making the most of your home decorJennifer has accomplished a lot in two yearsYou'll never guess how Layla got this painting to 'float'. P.S. That is an awesome gallery wall.

I really love this time of year. Days are bright and breezy, the water is cool, and everyone seems to be in a cottage state of mind. People are just more relaxed and nicer in the summer, don't you think?Running away to a summer place, a beach house, the family cottage... it's what summer weekends are made for. Decorating a cottage is fun too. Unlike a city home, a cottage seems to be a place that invites you to be a bit playful in your decor. From wall hangings and maritime maps to vintage paintings and modern typographic art, it all works in a cottage. I like cottages that evoke a…

We made such great progress on Project Walkway at the beginning of this summer that you would think selecting plants would be the easy (and quick) part. But off and on rain showers, summer vacation, and the desire to be doing anything but yard work meant it took us a good month to get to this point:Yay, we have boxwood hedges! Ok, they're not full hedges yet - but they will be in about 10 years! But let's backup. Like all worthwhile projects, there were a few hiccups to deal with. First we had to address this ugliness:See that spalling brick? We had large pieces of the 60 year old brick…

Well, so, here’s the thing. I have a whole post on farm updates that I’ve been working on for you–but it was feeling a little lame to write which is usually a sign that it’s going to be lame to read– and I’m up past midnight for the fourth day in a row this week, which, actually, kind of wrecks my life more than it used to when I was a young little insomniac… But I still wanted to give you guys a quick update on some things that have been going on around here. So. This isn’t a farm update (that’s coming soon, I swear) but it is a quick…

Okay, so there is no hope of starting this post with some clever opening line because I just can’t wait to show you guys something… WHAT. Holy. Shit. I just… Can we just… DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT THIS LOOKED LIKE FOUR WEEKS AGO?! Yeah, okay, so I’m not going to pretend that this is nearly as important to anyone else as it is to me. I haven’t often talked about or posted pictures of the full garage because it stresses me out. I mean, listen, in the three years I’ve lived here, I’ve probably only been away from the farm for, what? Fifteen days? That…

Otherwise known as VACATION. Right? I have this week “off work” which is a bit of a misnomer when you live in a half-torn-up house on a farm. I’m not off “work” I’m just off my day-job for a week… but you can bet your ass I’m still working. I’m working on things that really, really needed to get done around here, like a full deep-clean and re-organization of the animal barn and chicken coop… Nugs are digging it… And getting the trim painted and ready to be installed on the barn… And painting the existing…

I’m not. Because I’ve got a barn to paint, and a garden to weed, and a pergola to build. I’ve got chickens and donkeys and bees to tend to. Plus an unfinished bathroom or two, and a dozen more outdoor projects that need to be completed before winter. BUT. But if I was going to start the kitchen renovation, I’d definitely tear out the floor… Which, okay. I did that. But the dumpster was here… that was just being efficient. However, when I do finally decide to start working on the kitchen, I’ll definitely want to reconfigure a few of the cabinets. The…

You know, I measure most days (and weeks, and months) in lists of shit that I did not get done. In projects that take longer than I thought, or days when my time and energy need to be spent elsewhere. I keep lists on my phone, and lists on my computer, and lists on my bigass chalkboard. And for every item I check off those lists, I immediately add three more. That used to create an epic amount of anxiety for me because people are always talking about “balance” as if there’s some version of reality where you can do ALL OF THE THINGS and still, you know… sleep. For…

The following is a guest post from regular contributor, Katie at Organizing Moms. Do you have little ones who would like to help out in the kitchen? Are you looking for ways for your children to be more self-sufficient? One small way you can do this is to create a helper drawer. In our kitchen, […]Click here to keep reading on the blog -----> Organizing With Kids: A Drawer for Little Helpers

So here we are at the end of July and while I originally thought that July was going to be slower paced than June, I was oh so wrong. With holidays, operation switch rooms around and visiting company, we’ve been on the go, go, go. Here’s hoping August is our month of rest :) How […]Click here to keep reading on the blog -----> Sponsor Spotlight ~ July 2015

The following is a guest post from regular contributor, Morgan from Morganize with Me. Hi lovely organizers! Recently I shared with you my 5 Organizing Tips for Girl Spaces, so I knew I had to also cover my 5 Organizing Tips for Boy Spaces. I don’t necessarily find a big difference between how I organize […]Click here to keep reading on the blog -----> 5 Organizing Tips for Boy Spaces

The following is a guest post from regular contributor, Rachel at Useful Beautiful Home. When it’s time to actually get down to business and start packing your home, this is one of my well-loved tips. In a nutshell, make yourself a permanent packing station somewhere within your home. Again, most of my DIY tips are […]Click here to keep reading on the blog -----> DIY Moving Tips: Make a Packing Station

Hi everyone, how are you? My parents arrived safely and we are having a great visit together. We got all the rooms switched around just in the nick of time and it’s so exciting to finally have a designated guest room. My son is also enjoying his newly painted bigger bedroom (that was my daughter’s […]Click here to keep reading on the blog -----> Menu Plan Monday ~ July 27/15

My Speed Square – from Amazon to Australia That’s correct, I purchased my Speed Square from Amazon.com. I didn’t really plan it that way. I was looking on Amazon for an interesting project for my daughter to do over the school holidays, and found this very cool “Build Your Own Internal Combustion Engine” model. So I figured, since I was already placing an order I’d try ordering a hand tool from there also. I had looked at Speed Squares locally, and the only one I saw was a plastic version. I knew I wanted a metal version so didn’t buy it. After…

No Cost Mitre Saw Bench I’ve had my Ryobi Sliding Compound Mitre Saw for a few years now. It usually just sat loose on an old bench. When I needed it I just moved it around, to where ever there was a handy, clean space and cut what I needed. The problem with this loose set up is when you have more than 1 piece of a certain size that you need to cut. Setting up some sort of temporary stop always started with having to clamp the mitre saw down in place, before setting up some sort of stop for your material to rest against, set at the length you need to cut your timber. As you can imagine,…

These films make you feel amazed, inspired and envious I recently watched a short film called “Turns” , which is about master woodturner Steven Kennard. Watching the film creates one of those moments when you are all at once inspired, amazed and envious of the talent and passion some people possess. I especially love anything that shows talented individuals creating things using old fashioned hand-made skills and using old hand tools. After watching the Turns film, I discovered that it is part of a series of short films titled “Life’s Work: Six Conversations with…

Wood Rasp File by Shinto – a High Quality Woodworking Tool Walking around the Sydney Timber & Working with Wood Show last Sunday, I wasn’t planning on buying a new rasp file, or any file for that matter. But somehow that all changed when I wandered into the “Japanese Tools Australia” stand. The stand had a lot of amazing tools that looked really high quality. Some of them looked more like “tool art” that should be placed in a glass cabinet to be admired. The variety of tools included: Carving Chisels Carving Knives Japanese Saws Hand Forged Hammers…

My Pallet Wood Shrinkage & Expansion Problem Working with Pallet Timber (or reclaimed wood) is a great way to create furniture and other bits and pieces for around the home. Pallet wood can give an interesting and rustic feel to most pieces, especially if you leave the timber in it’s rough sawn state instead of dressing it all around. I only started working with pallet timber late last year, and I’m loving it… until this project. The Coffee Table Top I forgot about I started working on a coffee table top last October 2014 (in fact you can see an image of it at the end of…

Windows 10 includes some flashy new features like Task View virtual desktops, Cortana, the Edge browser, a Start menu, and apps that run in windows. Here are some of the other, more overlooked improvements.Click Here to Continue Reading

Windows 10 allows you to change the lock screen background, but the login screen background always features the default Windows 10 background. Use these tweaks and you can set any image or color you want as the background.Click Here to Continue Reading

The Apple Watch is packed with features that aren’t immediately visible at first glance. The music app on the watch immediately (and intuitively) controls the music app on your iPhone but it can also stand alone as its own Bluetooth-enabled iPod-like device. Read on as we show you how to link it to Bluetooth headphones and speakers.Click Here to Continue Reading

For those of you who have been following the renovation of our upstate cottage, you know that we chose a paint color for our little place on the Hudson a long time ago. We went with a dark, greyish blue called Evening Dove by Benjamin Moore. Though we love it, it turned out to be a little more blue than we had anticipated, especially in the bright sunlight in the middle of day. Originally, we had it all figured out in our minds. The house would be dark-grey blue and we’d paint the door a cherry tomato. But now that we’ve fast forwarded six months into the future and have been…

It’s hard to believe the 4th of July is already upon us! Here’s a few of our favorite, no-fuss, serves-a-crowd recipes to get you out of the kitchen and enjoying yourself. 1. Easy berry crumble. 2. Roast chicken on the grill. Spatchcocking! Make it your friend. 3. Green pea hummus dip. So easy, so tasty! 4. Pizza with fresh tomatoes and corn pesto. Summer on a plate. 5. Strawberry and pea shoot salad. 6. Cinnamon and cardamon oatmeal cookie, ice-cream sandwiches. What are you cooking over the 4th? Tell us about your favorite recipes!

I have a new addiction and it’s a costly one. Cold brew coffee. I’ve been ordering it from Starbucks and to our local coffee shop in town, The Able Baker, begrudgingly shelling out $3.50 to $4 per serving because it just tasted so much better than melted-ice-cubed-watered down dripped coffee. Ever industrious, Chad decided to make some for ourselves at home. Suddenly we realized why cold brew was so expensive! To make a gallon jug of it for ourselves, we had to use nearly half a can of ground coffee beans. And we had to plan and be patient: The brewing needed to be done…

Our 18-month long, unplanned renovation of our little river cottage is nearly complete. I am so excited to start sharing some of the final details with you. One new addition that we are especially happy with is a pipe-and-wood book shelf that Chad built in a little nook by the back deck doors — the area formerly known as our dining room. This is a look that admittedly is crazy trendy at the moment. Two shops we love, Watson’s Cabinet in Hudson, NJ and Salvage Style in Maplewood, NJ, have pipe shelves that they use to display their lovely wares, and inspired us greatly.

A few weeks ago one of our friends and fellow elementary school mom had the idea to bring Farmigo to our community. The concept is simple. Order fresh farm goods online through the easy-to-use site, pick up your edibles once a week at her house, and a portion of the sale gets donated to our local school. In the first week, we raised over $600. Clicking through Farmigo you can find all the staples you need: bread, eggs, milk, meat, and of course, fresh veggies and fruit. Start browsing around and before you know it you are adding things to your basket that whet your appetite and inspire the…

Enter the 2015 Therma-Tru Door Do-Over Sweepstakes from August 1-31 for a chance to win a new entry door for your home. The winner will receive a Therma-Tru fiberglass Classic-Craft or Pulse door of their choice valued at up to $5,000! Read on to find out more.

The late summer heat is upon us, so our August home maintenance chores focus on indoor tasks as well as some easy maintenance to keep your air conditioning system running right. Read on to find out more.

Congratulations to the winner of our Generac "Power Your Life" Contest, Bill Decherd of Barrington, Illinois! Bill's essay was chosen from the over 1,600 submitted during our online contest. As the winner, Bill will receive a Generac Guardian standby generator and installation valued at $8,000! Read on to find out more.

Winning a Contractor of the Year award is not an easy task, but only a few elite contractors can earn the award multiple times and in back-to-back years. Yet, that’s exactly what Tampa-based Jamco Unlimited Inc. did in 2014 and again in 2015. Read on to find out more.

We’ve all heard the motto, “Do what you love,” but when you encounter someone who’s actually doing it, it’s pretty awe-inspiring. On our recent trip to France, I got lucky, and got to participate in a tasting with David Meil, the president of Les Antiquaires du Cognac, an artisanal cognac distillery. Les Antiquaires du Cognac takes […]

There is a proverb that I used to kind of hate that says “The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second best time is now.” It bugs me because it’s so smug – so bucket listy – so serene and Pollyanna-ish, glossing over the very real frustration some of us […]

In a relationship, gardening is where the rubber meets the road. People are unique beings with unique quirks, and whatever yours are, the garden will reveal them. Got a soft heart, so that each cut of the pruner nips into it? Your plants will reveal it by growing long and leggy. Got a short memory, […]

One of the things I love about gardening is that every year is different, and every year, there’s the chance that something will astound you. This year, it was the Provencal pumpkin. I bought it at the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center plant sale, just because it sounded unusual. It was a little late […]

Blame my grandmother. Years ago, she taught me to cook a roast chicken by smell. “Put some salt and pepper in a bowl,” she said. “Now go through the spice rack. Open the jars and smell what’s inside. If you want your chicken to smell like that, put some in the bowl. If not, go […]

One of the more enjoyable things to do in central Texas is floating down the various rivers. The cool water on hot summer days not only cools the body but pulls the stress of the week out of you. I’ve been going with friends of mine that have tubing down to a fine art including a tube for their 70 ...By: jugglemContinue Reading »

How many times have you been in line at a cook-out filling your plate only to realize you have to make the decision to either leave your drink or your silverware due to the fact that your hands are full? While it's not a hard decision to make, obviously you quickly take your drink and head for ...By: Jared GContinue Reading »

My brother recently came back from college with a broken iPhone 5. After a little research I realized how much easier it was to fix this phone compared to the previous iPhone 4/4s. Instead of going through the back of the phone and removing all of the components it is as simple as moving all of the...By: LucasOchoaContinue Reading »

While browsing the internet recently, I discovered something called Salt Ceramic. It is also, according to many websites, known as Victorian Salt Clay, though I am not sure if there is anything Victorian about it. I was intrigued by it for a few reasons. First and most important, it's cheap. It is s...By: ThisIsMyNameOKContinue Reading »

Here is how to transform that beat up old guitar into a nice decorative planter for your home. Personally I found an old and broken guitar in the park behind my house (that place is a gold mine). Please don't waste a working instrument on this though. You will need:- An Old Guitar- Spray Paint- Dril...By: abeauleContinue Reading »

Recently I've been really into hairstyling so I've been trying out a whole lot of different hair products and don't get me wrong here a lot of these products are great but some of them are indeed pricey. For instance, when I got my hair cut at the end of June I purchased the hair wax that the stylis...By: Flash67Continue Reading »

This easy play dough has a twist of a mud consistency and colorThis play dough is not edible but is still is fun for kids Materials 1 cup flour1/2 cup salt2 tbs oil1/2 cup hot waterOptional: glycerin 1/2 cup coffee groundsOptional: if play dough is not dark enough add instant coffee Steps Mix ...By: Sheldy123Continue Reading »

Weddings have gotten increasingly expensive. The average wedding costs $26,444.00; in my area (Washington, D.C.), that figure raises to about $40,000.00. That's nuts. For flowers, I am told to project a budget of $2,300.00. $2,300.00.Please.The largest piece of the 'floral budget' is for centerpiece...By: ekeene1Continue Reading »

My daughter loves Halloween and asked me to make her something with our Halloween fabric! So, I made this quick adorable headband!Time~ 15 minutes Materials ~scrap fabric ~sewing tools and machine Fabric, Pin and Sew 1. Select two Halloween Fabrics. (I made a few of these in different patterns f...By: The Rustic Barn OwlContinue Reading »

One of the more enjoyable things to do in central Texas is floating down the various rivers. The cool water on hot summer days not only cools the body but pulls the stress of the week out of you. I’ve been going with friends of mine that have tubing down to a fine art including a tube for their 70 ...By: jugglemContinue Reading »

This diy project investigates the multi-functionality of clothes. In this case a built-in hanging chair. This is a proof of concept rather than a fashion design project. The WeDangle can change the way we sit drastically; it is a customized comfy seat that we carry always with us. You can use it as ...By: IamWeContinue Reading »

This bracelet is a great thing to do outside with some friends on a sunny day or even inside on a rainy day. This bracelet is also a useful survival tool carrying around 3 meters of paracord. All it uses is paracord, no buckles needed! Making it a quick 30 minute project. :)This is my first instruct...By: primitive FinnContinue Reading »

This project started as a fun idea and some concept art, and turned into a really great summer project with an awesome, useful final product. I spent a great deal of this summer working with my chemistry teacher (known as Doc), who is an excellent woodworker and has his own shop; we worked on this b...By: Jackofalltrades_Continue Reading »

So back when I lived in Portland, Oregon for a few years, my friend and I were talking one day and he thought it would be cool to make a Slip and Slide that did a turn around our Fire Pit. Of course I said, "I can build that!" and that was it. A few months later we were going to have a 4th of July p...By: StudioDaroseContinue Reading »

This diy project investigates the multi-functionality of clothes. In this case a built-in hanging chair. This is a proof of concept rather than a fashion design project. The WeDangle can change the way we sit drastically; it is a customized comfy seat that we carry always with us. You can use it as ...By: IamWeContinue Reading »

Looking forward to traveling soon? Use these ingenious hacks to make the trip less hectic and frustrating. Keep Collars Crisp Keep your collars on your dress shirts or polos nice, neat, and crisp. Use a rolled up belt and insert it into the collar area of your shirt. Not only does this keep colla...By: MarkYuContinue Reading »

Who doesn't love delicious wood-fired oven pizza? NO ONE. I had a dream of back yard pizza party fun times and began to do some research to make that dream a reality. First, I looked at the materials cost for a brick oven (spoiler alert: they are prohibitively expensive to build). I felt defeated. T...By: ekeene1Continue Reading »

This Instructable has this introduction and two more sections:0. The Why-blurb (see below)1. The How-blurb2. The PicturesI was motivated to build this gravity powered go-kart by the recent proliference of mini quad bikes and motorbikes in my immediate vicinity. Being interested in anything technical...By: nickivanContinue Reading »

Kayaking has become a popular activity here in the US and around the world. I am on a FB page dedicated to kayaking (church of the double bladed paddle) and love to see the pictures of people on the water, especially during our cold FROZEN New England winters.I am someone who loves to build, boats b...By: rowerwetContinue Reading »

You're out pedaling and you realize the pants you're wearing could get caught in the bike chain. Not good. But if you can find a plastic soda bottle, there's a quick fix! By: DouglasC10Continue Reading »

It's interesting seeing where inspiration can come from for our outdoor kits. In one of my introduction to cell biology labs, we used sample tubes containing various E. coli cultures... (I don't want to bore you with the experiment that followed so we will move on to the more interesting part). A ...By: Common Man SurvivalContinue Reading »

Cleaning a bolt action rifle is a important part of maintaining your rifle. This instructable will cover the basics of cleaning your weapon in order to prolong its life and keep it from rusting. It should be cleaned every time you go shooting. Inadequately cleaning your gun affects accuracy and can ...By: gdl_lvbContinue Reading »

One of the more enjoyable things to do in central Texas is floating down the various rivers. The cool water on hot summer days not only cools the body but pulls the stress of the week out of you. I’ve been going with friends of mine that have tubing down to a fine art including a tube for their 70 ...By: jugglemContinue Reading »

This diy project investigates the multi-functionality of clothes. In this case a built-in hanging chair. This is a proof of concept rather than a fashion design project. The WeDangle can change the way we sit drastically; it is a customized comfy seat that we carry always with us. You can use it as ...By: IamWeContinue Reading »

A wire loop game is a game which involves guiding a metal loop along a serpentine length of wire without actually touching the loop to the wire. The loop and wire are connected to a power source in such a way that, if they touch, they form a closed electric circuit. The circuit includes a light- or ...By: chrisjlionelContinue Reading »

In this Instructable, I made a spinning toy from 6 steel soda cans.What's needed:6 Steel Soda cans2 x nutsNeodymium magnetHot glue and permanent markersGlass surface like a table or mirror for spinning the toy Cut out the bottoms Cut out the bottoms from all the cans. Make a disk Nr1 Put 1...By: ShakeTheFutureContinue Reading »

IntroductionI constructed this guitar a few years ago on a whim, with no previous experience building guitars. There was a lot of learning I had to do, but with a little patience and a steady hand you can use a similar technique to create an electric guitar in a variety of novel shapes. It's sturdy,...By: DougMakesThingsContinue Reading »

Our company had a huge, gray cinderblock wall in our otherwise well-decorated advertising agency. I saw an opportunity for a gigantic 8-bit Mega Man battle scene. The design is based on the Mega Man game from 1987.The 8-bit characters in the mural were created with 4’ x 4’ ceramic tiles for the “pix...By: sradtkeContinue Reading »

A car key disguised as a screwdriver. Prank the police, or anyone else who happens to peek inside your car, then try and talk you way out of grand theft auto. This prank will make it look like your car has been stolen by having the ignition punched by a screwdriver, while in reality it's just your n...By: mikeasaurusContinue Reading »

A car key disguised as a screwdriver. Prank the police, or anyone else who happens to peek inside your car, then try and talk you way out of grand theft auto. This prank will make it look like your car has been stolen by having the ignition punched by a screwdriver, while in reality it's just your n...By: mikeasaurusContinue Reading »

When you think of things that seemingly dance to music you probably think of people on a dance floor. However would you believe a simple RC Quad-copter motor would dance too?! Well they are fully capable of rotating, vibrating, and producing a little sound of their own by soldering them to connectio...By: Asamati98Continue Reading »

Step by step instructions on how to make a solid body guitar on the CNC using parts from a cheap Epiphone Les Paul. I purchased my Epiphone Les Paul online for only $120 just to gut it for the electronics, hardware and neck. I used some 8/4 ash for the body and carved out the neck pocket, pickup and...By: Drunken WoodworkerContinue Reading »

This Instructable provides details and instructions for an outdoor ping pong table that also serves as a work of art which can become a permanent fixture on a sidewalk, plaza or park. Our intention was to provide an example of how an outdoor ping pong table can stimulate play and community, especial...By: grmaloneyContinue Reading »

I've wanted to make a sneaky magnetic geocache for a while now, but until recently I didn't know how I wanted to do it. I was inspired by this instructable to make a container out of a bolt. My idea was to hollow out a bolt, and to use a magnet to attach it to a metal object, where it should look l...By: ClockworkLemonContinue Reading »

This is how you get beetroot seeds in minecraft PE. The hoe First you make a hoe, using 2 sticks and 2 diamond, gold, iron, cobblestone, or wooden planks. than use the hoe over again until you get beetroot seeds you will probably get normal seeds to. you got it! Once you got one you can start ...By: JadenHorningContinue Reading »

This is how you get beetroot seeds in minecraft PE. The hoe First you make a hoe, using 2 sticks and 2 diamond, gold, iron, cobblestone, or wooden planks. than use the hoe over again until you get beetroot seeds you will probably get normal seeds to. you got it! Once you got one you can start ...By: JadenHorningContinue Reading »

Does this really need an introduction? Well here it is a knex fish. I was bored so yeah I just stumbled across this thing and decided to post it. Build It!! If you can't build it from one picture what are you doing looking at knex? By: jaredb1Continue Reading »

This is my lego PAC-man ghost. All the pic was taken by my iPod so not great quality. Hope you enjoy. The Body Start with two 2x4 next to each to make a 4x4 square and make this 4 high. On the top of the stack put 4 of the Legos with the lego bit on the side, on top. So you can put the sides on...By: r3g27Continue Reading »

This is an Instructables on how to play Castles. What You Will Need Players will need two or three decks of cards depending on the number of players. The design of the cards do not need to match. As long as all decks have the correct 52 cards, the game can be played.If two to four people are play...By: cahershContinue Reading »

How many times have you been in line at a cook-out filling your plate only to realize you have to make the decision to either leave your drink or your silverware due to the fact that your hands are full? While it's not a hard decision to make, obviously you quickly take your drink and head for ...By: Jared GContinue Reading »

My brother recently came back from college with a broken iPhone 5. After a little research I realized how much easier it was to fix this phone compared to the previous iPhone 4/4s. Instead of going through the back of the phone and removing all of the components it is as simple as moving all of the...By: LucasOchoaContinue Reading »

The easiest way to turn an N64 Controller into a USB Gamepad is to buy an N64 Controller Adapter for around £15. However it can also be done if you have an Arduino Leonardo or any other Arduino board with built-in USB communication.What you will need:An Arduino Leonardo (Also possible with oth...By: BobJones6732Continue Reading »

The 8x8x8 LED cube project published on the Instructables website was very detailed and yet looked simple enough for me not just to complete but add substantial enhancements as well.Following is a tutorial on how I built my 8x8x8 LED cube and also how I created the firmware and simulation using F...By: assasinsareusContinue Reading »

Battle Blimps are Bluetooth/RFDuino-controlled blimps designed for truly insane battling. We've developed them to be filled with hydrogen for explosive battles at Burning Man, but this design also works filled with helium for dueling indoors.Read on for lots of detail on the current design, schemati...By: nagutronContinue Reading »

Hi all ,On this Instructable will show you how to create a powerful diy Solder Fume Extractor with dual fans, this project is completely made out from scrap.You know what? breathing solder fumes is dangerous to health!How many of you are aware of lead poison?"Lead is used in the soldering process in...By: tominjoseContinue Reading »

It's the loose ends that will trouble you in electronics. One wire of hundreds is in the wrong spot... Or connected poorly... Or strained. Wire management is one of the most common things that I fight with during my projects. Staring at a huge pile of twisted, kinked, and tangled colorful wires is e...By: icecatsContinue Reading »

3D printers are great and 3D printed objects are even better. Many people think of 3D printers as a high-end industrial tool not accessible to the general public. This is entirely wrong. There is an abundance of low-cost, high quality hobby or "desktop" 3D printers available on the market. Thes...By: icecatsContinue Reading »

We've worked with FIRST K-12 STEM programs for 10 years now, starting with our son's FIRST LEGO League (FLL) robotics team in 2005, and then starting a FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) high school level robotics team in our garage in 2008. Before that, we'd volunteered in various capacities in various y...By: EurekaFactoryContinue Reading »

Tips and tricks for living with Ar-15 patterned rifles. By no means complete or final.Start by making the area safe for working with your firearm. No mags, verify the chamber is empty, remove all live rounds form the immediate area. Remove slings or other accessories. Gather Your Tools Most im...By: mr.smashyContinue Reading »

If you are interested in getting more fluid sweeping shots when shooting video or simply looking for an easy way to move your tripod around while taking shots, this instructable is for you. It can be done very inexpensively with just a few tools and a cheap piece of wood. Just a Few Tools Needed ...By: chadmikellContinue Reading »

If the electronic functions in your car are malfunctioning, a faulty control module is likely the cause. In many cases this can be fixed by inspecting and re-soldering the circuit board of the control module that controls whatever is malfunctioning. In this case I am repairing a body control module ...By: aDIYCarGuyContinue Reading »

In this project I show how I make a simple Laser engraved Birthday calendar. I used wood for the top and 2 color acrylic for the name tags. Easy and fun. View on YouTube By: ChadSchimmelContinue Reading »

I was recently comissioned to make a Morokei Dragon Priest Mask from Skyrim. I decided that since I couldn't find the perfect Morokei colour I had in mind in a regular metallic paint, I would use cold-casting techniques to create a realistic metal finish exactly how I'd envisioned. This led to many ...By: IkkalebobContinue Reading »

For the unique and personal touch to that piece of jewellery, this is a great idea as well as being low cost and easy.... You could add many different effects to it, wood burning patterns or initials etc.... sky's the limit!This is an older project for me so I apologise for the lack of photos during...By: One80BitsContinue Reading »

My wife has recently grown a fresh love of tea. With that in mind, I realised we'd given our tea box away to charity a while back. Solution: time to make one!As I like a challenge, I decided to use a single piece of reclaimed pallet wood to make the box - lid and handle included. All in all, it's ...By: Cairdy CraftsContinue Reading »

I used two trailer jacks to make an adjustable height work bench. I needed a way to store my new X-Carve CNC machine when not in use. You could modify this design easily to make an adjustable height standing desk. Modify Trailer Jack A small pin is all that holds the hand crank on the trailer...By: mikeandlaurenContinue Reading »

I was recently comissioned to make a Morokei Dragon Priest Mask from Skyrim. I decided that since I couldn't find the perfect Morokei colour I had in mind in a regular metallic paint, I would use cold-casting techniques to create a realistic metal finish exactly how I'd envisioned. This led to many ...By: IkkalebobContinue Reading »

I used two trailer jacks to make an adjustable height work bench. I needed a way to store my new X-Carve CNC machine when not in use. You could modify this design easily to make an adjustable height standing desk. Modify Trailer Jack A small pin is all that holds the hand crank on the trailer...By: mikeandlaurenContinue Reading »

My first bbq / braai project Find an industrial cable reel Once you have found your industrial cable reel, roll it into your workshop and smile. Reason being: the endless possibilities that lie ahead. Sand it down I decided to make a "sit/stand around" BBQ/Braai table. Sand it down and get ri...By: ethicaloffenceContinue Reading »

Awhile ago, I decided to change the outriggers/loading stabilizers on the rear of a 20' flatbed tandem trailer from the original design to a standard trailer jack.I regret that I don't have any pictures of the original outrigger design. It wasn't very complicated. It featured a piece of pipe that ...By: good_apolloContinue Reading »

I'm an amateur welder. Very amateur. I bought a small Campbell Hausfeld buzz box a few years ago to do occasional small welding jobs around my shop. Since I'm not using it a lot or trying to make my living by welding, I don't like to spend a lot on welding tools. I saw the magnetic welding jigs at t...By: Chuck StephensContinue Reading »

As part of building my new workshop it was necessary to first remove an old and poorly built extension (addition) to our house. After seeing how much a builder wanted to do the job that gravity was already doing for free I decided to tackle it myself. Although the extension was only a single story a...By: wobblycogsContinue Reading »

With just a few supplies, you can make lovely simple personalised Sterling Silver jewellery. I will start to write Instructables on some simple enough projects to get started into some new skills :) Enjoy! Set it up You will need to find a local supplier of Sterling Silver wire & Jewelers tools t...By: One80BitsContinue Reading »

I recently remodeled my home office and it is now quite modern in style. I am a big St. Louis Cardinals fan and have some sports memorabilia that I had previously displayed in my office and wanted to continue to do so. Problem was that all of my display cases were oak and mahogany in color and jus...By: JonBushContinue Reading »

The same day we experienced a slice of paradise in Caracoles, Puerto Rico, we went to see another island wonder! Playa Rosada build a deck and enclosure in the warm Caribbean sea, creating an ocean pool!I rushed my camera out, took some swift shots, then tucked it safely away so I could dive in! The enclosure prevents critters like jellyfish, but most beaches in Puerto Rico are so calm and beautiful if can be enjoyed with or without it. It was still such a fun novelty to behold! There's breath-taking natural beauty around every corner on this little island, I adore exploring every inch of it…

You've probably seen or bought Kombucha from your health food store. An acquired taste to some, it's a fizzy, tangy tea drink that's purported to help you lose weight, increase energy, and generally improve health. But why? And how can you make your own and save on buying some, as most bottles cost around $4.00!? I've made galloons of kombucha with various methods now and feel confident saying it's stupid easy to make your own healthy kombucha tonicHow it's Made: Your kombucha tea is fermented by a bacteria culture (The "Mother" or "Scoby" for Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast.) All…

You want to be productive, wealthy, and happy, it's only natural. Applying Feng Shui principles to your life is one way to make achieving all of these things easier. It can be as somple or as complex as you want it to be. There are Eastern vs. Western practitioners, bagua maps, color recommendations, elements, and rules for how to place your furniture or layout your floor plan. From my reading, the fundamental Feng Shui rules are practical and rooted in known brain and psychological study. (Like the brain's reticular activating system, which I wrote about here.) This ancient wisdom has been…

Tourist towns usually boast amazing indie shopping experiences. During our recent trip we went on a general exploration, walking around broadly to soak in as many oak-lined classic streets as possible. On the next visit I'll drill in and examine more indie businesses. I saw what looked like an herb shop on the way out of town and plenty of cafe and "tea" houses that looked good, too!Civvies Clothes I spent a good chunk of time, and could have spent more, in Civvies Clothes. They had a beautiful array of retro and retro-inspired clothing, all well-curated and excellent prices.It's located on…

It's been a little bit since I've updated on my body care line/soap making adventures. We're nearly ready to launch. I've bought a couple of domain names, products are sitting waiting to be labeled, and we're anxious to get out selling! The thing that keeps us from moving forward swiftly is formulating. As my wise teacher advised, things rarely comes out as you envision; it takes time to invent quality formulations. We moved a lot of products that were intended for our initial launch to future launches because we refuse to put out anything we can't endorse 100%. Today I had to share our…

Reclaimed wood is one of the hottest design elements going right now. Recreate that look more affordably with faux wood panels. Even close up, faux reclaimed wood is indistinguishable from the real thing. Sourced from old palettes, demolished barns and a variety of other places, reclaimed wood is a great way to repurpose an expensive building material. Interior designers are increasingly using reclaimed wood for stunning accent walls and ceiling designs; and it’s a look that’s sure to remain timeless. But while this material looks great, it’s not easy to work with. For a…

Could artificial brick or stone panels be the key to tiny house design? Simon and Lindsey’s “Bird Nest” house was just 192 sq. ft. and moveable as a trailer. Tiny Houses are all the rage at the moment. The concept of extremely-small-square-footage living has been around for a while, but has exploded in popularity in recent years. There’s even a TV show about it – Tiny House Nation. And like with all the hottest design shows – Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Man Caves, Money Hunters, Curb Appeal and many more -faux panels were stars of a recent episode. Old…

We’ve published hundreds of photos that show our faux panels being used to create accent walls in both private homes and at places of business – but why? What’s the benefit of an accent wall? And why would you use faux panels on them? Faux panels created a stunning accent wall in this cozy basement living room that was affordable and easy to install. An ‘accent wall’ is an innovative design trick in which one or more walls in a room are decorated in a different style to the others. It can be bold – like one wall entirely covered with stone – or…

Adding a deck to your home is a right of passage. It’s a addition that can transform your home; and how you enjoy it during the summer. And with faux panels, you can add a lot of deck for a lot less money; by using the panels to create seamless deck siding. Faux stone deck siding gives decks a polished look, and adds a practical element by keeping wildlife and debris out from underneath. ‘Deck gap’ is a real issue. It’s the problem people have with the bare space between where a deck begins, and the ground ends. It’s difficult to maintain if you have grass, and…

What can we learn from this classic episode of TV’s Money Hunters? Rec room makeover with Ledgestone panels Adding some extra square footage to your home doesn’t have to be a challenge. In this classic episode of the DIY Network’s Money Hunters show, hosts Matt Blashaw and Deanne Bell helped turn a dank and dismal garage into a cool and comfy rec room; a makeover made easier with faux ledgestone panels. The first challenge was the budget. As Matt explained: “We’re turning a garage into a living room, so the budget could easily top $75,000.” The problem?

All Things Thrifty blogger Brooke Ulrich and her children got to preview one of the Home Depot Kids Workshop projects– the Chalkboard Door Hanger. This is the featured project for the August 2015 Kids Workshop and is typical of the kinds of projects the kids do at these monthly free workshops. Get more information about the free workshop at the end of this article. Home Depot Kids Workshop Project My kids love projects. I’m lucky they do because nine times out of ten, I’m painting something in the garage myself. They love to be by my side, and I love that we have that in…

These concrete and pipe shelves by Ashley from Simply Designing combine the best of pipe projects and concrete projects. They’re great for giving a room an industrial chic or rustic look, and they’re a practical way to add some shelf space. Just following along with Ashley’s tutorial to create your own concrete and pipe shelves. Concrete and Pipe Shelves I am currently working hard to create my dream office space and love how it is turning out! It is a little bit rustic, a little bit industrial chic and a little bit fancy. It is the perfect space to get creative…

It’s quite common to replace the top of a patio table. Less common is creating a concrete table top for replacement. It’s pretty easy to do, though, and you’ll have a durable and attractive top for your patio table. Courtney West, of the blog Our Alabama Life, has the tutorial. Just follow the step-by-step instructions to create your own concrete table top. Concrete Table Top When my husband and I got married (ten years ago now- wow!), our in-laws handed down a patio set they no longer wanted. At the time, I did a quick spray paint job on the table and…

These DIY string light poles are extra sturdy and they look unlike any string light poles we’ve seen, with tree trunks taking the place of wooden or metal poles in the concrete bases. Jessica Gregg, one of the three “Sorelle Sisters” of J. Sorelle, created these string light poles for our Cement DIY Challenge– with concrete being an important ingredient in the project. The lights are a lovely addition to her rustic and nature-inspired patio decor. If you don’t have Aspen tree trunks, you can certainly use regular wooden or metal poles. You can also use these…

Concrete can be the magic ingredient to all sorts of projects, as we’re seeing in our Cement DIY Challenge series here on The Home Depot Blog. In this case the concrete isn’t visible. Ashley Mahoney of Ashley Ella Design created a foundation for the paver stone bench kit she built in her backyard. The bench looks great, and with the simple concrete foundation, it will stay level and sturdy for years to come. Read on to see how she built the paver stone bench and to see just how easy it was to create the concrete foundation. Paver Stone Bench with Concrete Foundation This…

The Foundation: Total Alkalinity The chemistry of a swimming pool can be compared to a house. Every house must have a foundation. In the case of your pool, the total alkalinity is the foundation, because if it is incorrect, the rest of the pool water chemistry will eventually become out of balance. You must start […]

A swimming pool makes any backyard more beautiful and provides fun for the entire family. But it's important to remember that certain materials used in and around swimming pools may not be compatible with chemicals commonly used to keep pool water clean and sparkling (pool chlorine, pool salt, pool stabilizers, etc.). Use these swimming pool tips to help you save money and time by choosing the right materials for use in and around your pool.

Shopping for pool equipment can be confusing and technical. When you’re looking for technical devices like replacement pool pump motors, you can easily feel lost in a world of technology. For guidance, take a look at the following tips on what to look for when shopping for a replacement pool pump motor. Low Water Cut-Off […]

With a new pool control from Hayward, you can automate virtually everything in your backyard for a better experience for you and your family and more time to enjoy it. Adding a pool control takes the work out of pool and spa ownership by automating all work-intensive functions such as sanitization, balancing pool pH, pool cleaning, and filtration.

With today's trend toward oversized baths and luxurious home spas, being stuck with a small bathroom is a challenge, to be sure. It can be awfully tempting to downplay the decorating scheme for a modestly proportioned bath, in hopes that no one will notice just how cramped the quarters really are. See full article.

Kitchen remodel time! You've probably been waiting years for the chance to update that most-used room of the American home, your kitchen. And right now your head is dancing with visions of beautiful backsplashes and fabulous flooring. You've browsed kitchen designs and found tons of new fashions you love. See full article.

Bzz … Buzz … Whoosh! Flying insects are definitely annoying. They can also be dangerous-- flies and mosquitoes spread all sots of diseases, while stings from hornet, wasps, or bees are painful and extremely dangerous to anyone with an allergy. See full article.

Summer is a time to relax and take life a little more slowly … especially when the mercury climbs over 90 degrees. At the same time, the sunny season offers an opportunity to tackle household projects which were impossible when the ground was shrouded in snow. See full article.

News flash: Singles make up approximately one third of home buyers these days (21 percent single women and 10 percent single men). Whether they're young or not-so-young never-married professionals, divorcees, widows, or just plain free spirits, today's singles are ready and willing to take the leap and purchase solo. See full article.

Going ‘faux’ offers a wealth of opportunities – like 21st century air conditioning in a classic, timeless home. Faux beams are hollow, making it easy to run A/C ducting through without compromising style. Old world style and modern convenience don’t always go well together. That’s why folks who collect classic cars still tend to drive to work in a modern vehicle – a ’55 Chevy might look cool, but it’s not so much fun on the daily commute without air conditioning, disc brakes and satellite radio. The same rule applies in people’s homes.

FauxWoodBeams.com doesn’t just do beams. We offer a variety of other products, and one of the most exciting of them are faux wood planks. Faux wooden planks combined with faux beams transform an antique home’s ceiling. Wooden planks are a staple of good interior and exterior design. More than a few houses have been sold on the promise of their hardwood floors before, and adding planks to ceilings, walls or exteriors is a great way to add a classic, rustic look to your home. But using real planks has a number of issues. First off, any real timber is expensive – especially if…

You asked, we listened – our best-selling Woodland Beams are now part of the Quick Ship lineup! One of our most versatile products, Quick Ship Woodland beams vividly recreate the look of real solid wood. There’s a reason why these Woodland beams are such a popular choice at FauxWoodBeams.com Elegant in their simplicity, they offer the look of real wooden beams at a fraction of the price – easy to install, and incredibly versatile. And now we’re excited to offer an additional advantage to these sought-after products – they now come with the Quick Ship option.

Ameristar is an exciting new casino resort spa in Black Hawk, Colorado When Pinnacle Entertainment planned to open their Ameristar Casino, Resort and Spa in one of western America’s most beloved historical districts, it was important to get the look just right. Our faux rustic wood beams helped make that happen. Black Hawk, Colorado, is a former gold-rush town that’s become one of the most historic districts in Colorado. It’s also home to one of the most exciting casino resorts to open in recent years – Ameristar. With over 1,400 slot machines, 536 luxurious hotel…

Faux wood accents are a great way to add period detail to a modern home. One subtle touch is adding a door or window header – but how do you go about installing one of those? A classic L-header, trimmed and installed to give the appearance of a solid wooden beam. The trick to using our products effectively is to mirror how the real thing would be used in a house construction. On the interior of a home, faux beams should mimic how real wood beams are used to hold up the ceiling. Likewise, rafter tails on a roof should look like the overhanging tails of real wooden roofing beams. An…

If you had a formal drafting class, you probably learned about making orthographic projections–engineering drawings with multiple views (for example, top, front, and right). Even if you didn’t take the class, you’ve probably seen drawings like this where you view a 3D object as a series of 2D views from different angles. These days, you are more likely to create a 3D model of an object, especially if you are going to 3D print it. After all, the 3D printer software is going to expect a model. When [Nightshade] wanted a laptop stand for his workbench, he started trying to do…

Did you know weather satellites transmit their weather images over an FM frequency? And now that you know… You can intercept them yourself with a $10 FM radio dongle! American NOAA weather satellites are in a polar orbit around earth, and each one will pass the same point approximately every 12 hours. When it is overhead, the signal is strong enough to receive. After [Matt] found out this tidbit of knowledge, he had to learn how to intercept the images himself. The satellites transmit the images over the 137MHz band, and using a radio tuner USB dongle, you can record the transmission…

[Garrett Greenwood] plays Smash Brothers, and apparently quite seriously. So seriously that he needed to modify his controller with five Neopixels so that it flashed different color animations according to the combo he’s playing on the controller; tailored to match the colors of the moves of his favorite character, naturally. All of this happens with an ATtiny85 as the brains, which we find quite ambitious. Indeed, [Garrett] started out thinking he could simply read each of the inputs from the controller directly into the microcontroller at the heart of the whole thing, but then counted…

Do you happen to have any 15,000 volt capacitors sitting around? [Ludic Science] didn’t so he did the next best thing. He built some. If you understand the physics behind a capacitor (two parallel conductors separated by a dielectric) you won’t find the build process very surprising. [Ludic] uses transparency film as an insulator and aluminum foil for the conductive plates. Then he wraps them into a tube. He did throw in a few interesting tips about keeping the sheets smooth and how to attach the wires to the foil. The brown paper wrapper reminded us of old caps you might find in…

If you get tired of charging batteries, you might be interested in [Hackarobot’s] energy harvesting demo. He uses a peltier device (although he’s really using it as a thermocouple which it is). A 1 farad super capacitor stores energy and an LTC3108 ultra low voltage converter with a 1:100 ratio transformer handles the conversion to a useful voltage. The truth is, the amount of energy harvested is probably pretty small–he didn’t really characterize it other than to light an LED. In addition, we wondered if a proper thermocouple would work better (some old Russian…

Do you need to update your outlets so they are up to code? In this #DIY how to in 60 seconds, Doug Cornwell shows you how to change a regular outlet to a GFCI outlet. Did you know that any outlet near water needs to be GFI protected? 1. Unscrew the plate and outlet. 2. Attach the white wire to the silver screw and the black wire (hot wire) to the copper screw tightly. -Depending on which outlet you get, you will either have holes that they go into (so you will have straight wires) or you will curl them around the screw (curled wires). 3. Hook the bare wire onto the ground screw. 4. Make sure…

This weekend, on Saturday, Aug. 1, and Sunday, Aug. 2, Alure Home Improvements will be hosting its third annual Summer Remodeling Fashion Show from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. The fun-filled, family-friendly event will take place in Alure’s showroom in East Meadow and is a must-see for any homeowners who have been considering a remodeling, renovation or redesign project in their home. Although the bounce house and balloon animals may be enough to get your kids excited for the festive event, here are a few examples of the other exhibits that will be on display. You’ll be able to…

In Long Island, hurricane season starts June 1 and lasts until Nov. 30. Although the worst storms usually don't come until late August, September or October, it's never too early to prepare your home and family for a severe storm. Whether a hurricane or tropical storm brings gale-force wind or just rain, there are a few things that people can do to decrease the chance of damage to their homes and increase their family's safety. Follow these tips to prep for storm season this year. Prepare for the worst Often, hurricanes do the most damage to the Gulf area and south Atlantic…

Need to add an outlet? In this #DIY how to in 60 seconds, Doug Cornwell shows you how to cut through sheetrock and place an electrical box in the hole. 1. First you will need a plastic electrical outlet box. – Make sure it is suitable to code in your area. 2. Determine a location and draw a pencil outline for the box. – This is the are you are going to cut. 3. Take a sheetrock knife or saw and cut out the shape of the box. 4. Place electrical box in the hole and use a screw gun to tighten the top screws. – Go slow with this as it is going to pull in the box. 5. Repeat the…

Whether you're planning on selling your house in a few weeks or a few years, there are certain improvements that you can make to your house that will have a bigger impact than others. For example, installing a pool, built-in bookcases or specialty gadgets around the house may be expensive and enhance your experience with the home, but the projects won't necessarily put value back into the property for others. Instead, there are certain upgrades that you can make to your house that will make it a better place for you to live and attract the offers you want from…

Are you a small business doing your best to win over local customers? Making every experience in your store or shop a pleasant one is the first step towards gaining their trust! A TV lift can add to your business’ […] The post The Benefits of Ceiling Lifts for Your Small Business appeared first on Nexus 21 - Concealment Systems.

Reason One: Be thankful that you decide the room layout, not the TV. Making plans for upgrading your TV this summer? Struggling with the logistics of where to put it? A TV lift can hide your TV away safely in […] The post 4 Reasons to be Thankful for a TV Lift appeared first on Nexus 21 - Concealment Systems.

Do you have a TV lift? Have you realized what other uses a lift can be installed for? Here are just six ways we’ve seen people use lifts – and that doesn’t even scratch the surface of possibilities! We’ve said […] The post 6 Inventive Uses for a Hidden TV Lift appeared first on Nexus 21 - Concealment Systems.

In the highly competitive hospitality industry, cutting costs and filling rooms are the top priorities. How do you provide a superlative experience for all your guests, while saving every penny possible per room? Automation is the answer. By controlling the […] The post Hospitality Automation – Hotels Kick it up a Notch! appeared first on Nexus 21 - Concealment Systems.

The hospitality industry is a fiercely competitive one. Having extra amenities can set a boutique or chain hotel far above its competitors. TV lift cabinets and other functional TV furniture can maximize the space in hotel rooms, make each guest’s […] The post Advantages of using TV Lifts in Hotel Rooms appeared first on Nexus 21 - Concealment Systems.

Happy Saturday! Welcome to our weekly ‘Three Things” post where you’ll find a peek into my week and some things that are making me happy. Three things is just how I start and organize this, though – I throw in bonuses and links to some fun recipes, diy projects, and garden ideas that I like and think you […]The post Three Things 8.01.15: Record Tomatoes, Packing, Favorite Razor appeared first on An Oregon Cottage. Thank you for subscribing! ***Here is the link to your FREE eBook:*** CLICK HERE for the PDF version of Seasonal Dinner Menus eBook to view in your browser {or…

U me and the kids The holidays are upon us and you will be in full flow right now doing plenty of exciting things as a family. The weather seems to be holding us back a little, It’s done nothing but rain! Typical British weather. Luckily, I have been thinking of extra things to do inside to keep the boys […] The post Plasticine Softeez Twitter Party Wed 5th August 2pm- 4pm is an article from http://umeandthekids.com. U,ME AND THE KIDS is a UK Lifestyle & UK Parenting Blog - which features articles for people who love Lifestyle tips and Parenting Guidance.

U me and the kids Anyone who reads my blog or follows me on social media will be aware that we suffered a flood from two leaks back in January. The leaks came from our stop tap and piping and literally ruined all of our downstairs living space. The kitchen and living room floor had to be scrapped and 4 drying machines were […] The post Our Home Decor is Under construction! is an article from http://umeandthekids.com. U,ME AND THE KIDS is a UK Lifestyle & UK Parenting Blog - which features articles for people who love Lifestyle tips and Parenting Guidance.

U me and the kids Scarborough has some really great attractions. whether you have never been before or you are a returning visitor here you will find my top 5 fun things to do in scarborough, which are really fun and in my opinion hidden gems. It’s the School Holidays and what better time to escape the nightmare of building work […] The post Top Fun 5 Things to do in scarborough you do not want to miss! is an article from http://umeandthekids.com. U,ME AND THE KIDS is a UK Lifestyle & UK Parenting Blog - which features articles for people who love Lifestyle tips and Parenting…

Moving can be a clarifying time. You take all of the possessions you’ve acquired and pack all of them into boxes. It’s an exercise that seems tailormade to spark soul searching and tough choices. You might love and cherish your old Lego collection, for example, but maybe not enough to give up space that could be going to your comfy recliner. To help ease your struggle, we’ve provided some suggestions for what to keep and what to toss out as you make your move. Warning: This might be harder than you think. Ditch: Collectibles Image by Joel Telling/Flickr Admit it: You’ve been storing a…

A backup camera makes hitching a trailer easier, but with patience and a little bit of luck, you can hook up a trailer even without a back-up cam. By following the simple steps we’ve outlined below, you can do this on your own or with help from a friend. Know the Parts of Your Trailer and Hitch Most towing trailers are identical or closely similar to the diagram below. Be sure to measure the ball on your towing vehicle to make sure it’s the same diameter as the cup on the hitch – that can be a big problem before you’ve even gotten started! Most auto parts stores sell…

Even if you try to be eco-conscious on a daily basis, you may find that moving destroys your best intentions. The average household uses 60 cardboard boxes during a move, and if you buy them from a moving company, they are probably brand new. Add in packing materials, fuel for your trip, and all the items you throw away prior to your move, and you’ll see how damaging simply changing homes can be. But it doesn’t have to be! We have compiled some tips to help you organize a greener move. 1. Reduce the number of items you have to pack and move. That old cliché for going green – “reduce,…

During my first interstate moving adventure, my husband backed the moving truck into our best friend. She wasn’t hurt, but this brings us to our first tip for driving a moving truck yourself. Use your mirrors, but also make sure the person helping you back up isn’t in your blind spot. Today’s automotive technology gives us backup cameras and alerts, but you probably won’t find these options in rental moving vans. You often won’t even find a center rear-view mirror because there’s nothing to see. Request a new model truck and you might enjoy a cleaner cab and slightly better gas…

Now that summer is upon us, it’s the perfect time to get outside and spruce up that barren backyard to give some final touches on your new home. A backyard project doesn’t have to be expensive, especially if you’re willing to get your hands a little dirty and test out your ingenuity. Here are ten affordable, DIY ways to decorate your new yard. Tiki Wine Torches This one’s especially great for the wine lovers out there. You can use your leftover bottles to create your own personal Hawaiian luau full of recycled Tiki torches. The bottles don’t have to be from wine – anything…

Are you ready for a ROCKIN’…I mean rockin’ giveaway? I know I am, and I can’t wait for you to see what amazing prize or shall I say prizes is up for grabs! Here at The Ribbon Retreat, we LOVE to show off our amazing and absolutely adorable ribbon! So…we wanted to share our ribbon […]

Yay, it’s video day! I am really excited to share this video with you today, because sometimes instead of a big bow, you just need a simple little bow that is tiny and petite. Today’s Simple Bow video tutorial is just perfect for those little newborn heads, an embellishment for a little top, or a […]

Big bows, big bows…who loves big bows? I surely do, and I think a lot of you might too! When my little girl was born, my siblings would always say that the bows I put on her head where bigger than her actual head. I would just laugh, because they are just crazy…maybe a little […]

Hi Ribbon Retreat Readers and welcome back to YouTube Thursday! I am so excited to introduce today’s big, bold and beautiful project and YouTube video tutorial! This Jumbo Tulle Hair Bow is sure to make a strong statement of cuteness, personality and pizzazz! I don’t know about all of you, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE […]

An absolute staple in any summer family gathering in my husband’s family is a great big watermelon. Yummmm! All of the kiddos absolutely love-ove-ove this popular summer fruit and that juicy melon usually doesn’t last longer than a couple of minutes. But don’t fret because with today’s adorable Watermelon project, there will definitely be enough […]

When was the last time you took a shower? If you’re anything like the majority of people in the UK, jumping in the shower before work each morning is something you do without really thinking about it. Most of us have a daily shower, and we don’t spend much time thinking about how efficiently it’s working. If your shower has slowed to a trickle or is temperamental in other ways, it’s easy to think that the only option is to rip out the whole unit and replace it. Often though, issues with the shower can be resolved by changing just the shower head, and there are lots of benefits to be…

We all love those home improvement shows where someone buys a wreck of a house for next to nothing, makes some clever renovations and then sells it for a fortune. When it comes to our own homes though we can be blind to their faults, and it can be hard to know what sort of improvements are worth doing to sell your home, and which are not worth the money. DeclutteringThe first and most effective home improvement is the one which costs the least money. If your home is crammed with ornaments, pictures and family photos, it can be hard for prospective buyers to imagine what it might be like with…

Over the past few years our winters have been wet rather than Arctic, but every time we get heavy snow there are tales of drivers stranded for hours on the motorways, or who get involved in crashes because they are unprepared for the winter conditions. Driving in fog, snow or ice is not part of the driving test, so as a driver it’s your responsibility to make sure you are properly prepared and know how to react if you are caught in a sudden snowfall.Be Prepared Weather forecasts are far more accurate now than they were even five years ago, so if you switch on the evening news to see snow is…

Even in a centrally heated home, getting the temperature in the bathroom correct can be tricky. The window often needs to be left open for ventilation, and because of the restrictions on using electricity in bathrooms you can’t just plug in an electric heater as you would elsewhere in the house. If you’re feeling the chill in your bathroom this winter don’t despair; there are a few options which will help you make everything a bit warmer.Underfloor HeatingCredit: H. RaabIt’s not really practical to consider installing underfloor heating in your bathroom unless you are having other…

Shovelling snow is one of those thankless tasks that simply must be done no matter how much we’d like to pretend otherwise. The fact is that it’s hard work and all too often those of us who have spent a lot of time the previous day clearing paths, wake up to find that Mother Nature has been out and about whilst we’re sleeping and done her worst yet again - so the whole sorry task has to be repeated! If you live in an area where the roads are not cleared by the authorities then you will know just how important shovelling snow can be, especially for those people who have mobility issues.

I have been experimenting with sugar washes for a while now. After trying out several different ways to flavor a distilled sugar wash; infusing, essences etc.. I decided I wanted to try something new. I want to attempt and all grain mash. It is a bit intimidating at first, as you have to learn how grains work and what they are capable of doing. With a little bit of input and advise, here’s what I came up with: The Ryebrid ( hybrid rye) Recipe: 5 Gallon Supplies: Heat source Water source Brewers Pot Ferment Vessel 7lbs Rye Flakes 4lbs 6row Pale Malt 2lbs Corn…

When talking to folks about their runs, there always seems to be a lot of confusion around why you need a heat controller and how you can use it to control your boil temperature. Simply put, you can’t. And now for the more in depth explanation as to why you need to be able to control your heat. Since you are reading this I am going to assume you already have a pretty solid understanding of basic distillation, and if not, you should go touch up on that since a lot of this probably won’t make any sense! Boiler Temperature vs. Speed of Vaporization Ethanol Phase Diagram So, lets…

Strawberry Brandy Supplies Whether you’re picking em’ , growing em’, or stopping by the Farmer’s Market, it’s that time of year for fresh produce! You know what that means… time to whip up your first fruit brandy of the season! Today we will walk you thru a Simple Strawberry Brandy mash to help kick the summer off right! What You Will Need: -Fruit: Today we are using 2lbs Strawberry -Sugar: 2 cups (helps bring up your ABV%) -Your favorite brandy yeast (we prefer our Pot Still Turbo Pure Yeast) -Large…

Venturing outside one’s home country always involves a learning curve. To blend in wherever you go, educate yourself on the country’s specific food and drink customs before departing, starting with some of the traditions below. By the time you get out of Dodge, you might not completely pass for a native, but at least you won’t stick out like a sore thumb. 1. Toasting in Georgia No, we’re not talking about Georgia as in the summer-scorchin’, smooth-talkin’,…

Continuing the commemoration of Cinco de Mayo and the history of tequila, scientists have tentatively shown some health benefits of tequila. Of course, the old adage “everything in moderation” comes to mind, but nonetheless, natural sugars found in tequila, known as agavins, do have an upside. As mentioned in the last post, tequila is derived from the blue agave plant, largely grown in Mexico. As long as you are drinking 100% pure agave tequila, the following health perks may benefit you: 1) The “agavina” (natural sugar of the agave plant) boosts insulin production…

My Speed Square – from Amazon to Australia That’s correct, I purchased my Speed Square from Amazon.com. I didn’t really plan it that way. I was looking on Amazon for an interesting project for my daughter to do over the school holidays, and found this very cool “Build Your Own Internal Combustion Engine” model. So I figured, since I was already placing an order I’d try ordering a hand tool from there also. I had looked at Speed Squares locally, and the only one I saw was a plastic version. I knew I wanted a metal version so didn’t buy it. After…

No Cost Mitre Saw Bench I’ve had my Ryobi Sliding Compound Mitre Saw for a few years now. It usually just sat loose on an old bench. When I needed it I just moved it around, to where ever there was a handy, clean space and cut what I needed. The problem with this loose set up is when you have more than 1 piece of a certain size that you need to cut. Setting up some sort of temporary stop always started with having to clamp the mitre saw down in place, before setting up some sort of stop for your material to rest against, set at the length you need to cut your timber. As you can imagine,…

These films make you feel amazed, inspired and envious I recently watched a short film called “Turns” , which is about master woodturner Steven Kennard. Watching the film creates one of those moments when you are all at once inspired, amazed and envious of the talent and passion some people possess. I especially love anything that shows talented individuals creating things using old fashioned hand-made skills and using old hand tools. After watching the Turns film, I discovered that it is part of a series of short films titled “Life’s Work: Six Conversations with…

Wood Rasp File by Shinto – a High Quality Woodworking Tool Walking around the Sydney Timber & Working with Wood Show last Sunday, I wasn’t planning on buying a new rasp file, or any file for that matter. But somehow that all changed when I wandered into the “Japanese Tools Australia” stand. The stand had a lot of amazing tools that looked really high quality. Some of them looked more like “tool art” that should be placed in a glass cabinet to be admired. The variety of tools included: Carving Chisels Carving Knives Japanese Saws Hand Forged Hammers…

My Pallet Wood Shrinkage & Expansion Problem Working with Pallet Timber (or reclaimed wood) is a great way to create furniture and other bits and pieces for around the home. Pallet wood can give an interesting and rustic feel to most pieces, especially if you leave the timber in it’s rough sawn state instead of dressing it all around. I only started working with pallet timber late last year, and I’m loving it… until this project. The Coffee Table Top I forgot about I started working on a coffee table top last October 2014 (in fact you can see an image of it at the end of…

I’ve been pondering a while how to open this post. I found it to have a lack of body. But there’s pictures! A lot of them! I guess it’s ok not to write a lot every once in a while. As long as there are pictures. So dive in to see how we splashed paint on our living room ceiling. We used the same white primer and paint as in the kitchen, and the same tried-‘n-tested method as before: picture around 1 m². If it has any corners, I did those first with a large round brush (5 cm): After the brush I got paint on my roller and smeared it open in an M-shape. Next came rolling…

What good is a frame without any drywall attached to it? None, I tell you! So I present you: drywall against the frame! As most of the thinking and planning had already been done before the frame went up, this one was done execution style. Get panel on the lift and hoist it in the air… … then screw it in place… … only to perform “wash-rinse-repeat”. Before you know it the second row is started… … and the shit hits the fan. For once I didn’t put on my gloves (the screws tended to catch in them, pulling my drill against my hand), and I found…

Because it’s all fun and stuff. Juggling with metal studs. I do it every day. I eat them for breakfast. No, not really. But I did have to do a lot of planning to set up the frame, and that’s what we’ll be talking about today. The possibilities I wanted the ceilings to be as high as possible. A high ceiling provides a more spacious feel, and it suits the house. No discussion there. As with the kitchen, I had a few choices: a wooden frame, a single metal frame or a double metal frame. I didn’t see a wooden frame work, so the choice was between either metal options. With…

Aah, the first step to a useful living room: create more dust and mayhem! Why? Because it’s fun! And because all those nifty comfortable things we’ve gotten used to so badly don’t work for themselves: they need electricity. But we don’t want that to be visible, do we? Of course we don’t. Even back when they originally built our house, wires were placed to be barely visible. Add another 80 year of evolution and nowadays there are plenty of tricks up our sleeves to make wires go invisible! Side note: usually people run their cables to the outlets and switches over…

Living and dining room, sitting in a tree, K-I-… Wait, that doesn’t make any sense. At all. Or does it? In our case, it does, as they are practically one room. So we treat them as one as well. The previous owners had it set up to have the dining room against the street, then the living room in the middle, and the kitchen in the back (where we have it as well). This worked for them, because that generation was raised with the idea that day-to-day living happened in or around the kitchen, and the dining room was for special occasions only (or for when they had visitors). Times…

Check out the top summer hits of the last 50 years, because nothing says summer like driving along with the windows down, and jamming to some tunes. The post 50 Years of Summer Hits appeared first on Personal Creations Blog.

There's little better than a trip to the pool in summertime. Splash down some awesome slides and ride the best lazy rivers with this list of the country's ten best waterparks.The post Top 10 Waterparks in the USA appeared first on Personal Creations Blog.

It’s wedding season, and the perfect "first date" for a pair of newlyweds starts with a charming picnic basket for two.The post Newlywed Picnic Gift Basket and FREE Printable appeared first on Personal Creations Blog.

Look, growing up, I had no problem with puppets. It’s not like I was afraid of them. It’s just that they sort of kept me up at night if I saw one at any point past 6 p.m. Strange? Yes. But appropriate? Perhaps; considering I grew up in a neighborhood that had, at various points in the last decade, been home to creepy clowns, hunched over ice cream truck drivers and the like. Needless to say, when we started taking care of our niece a lot, I didn’t want her to feel the same sort of weirdness around puppets that I had. And actually, it turns out she was a big fan of them to…

We grew up in the ’80s, which means at some point our parents put ugly Christmas sweaters on us, took us to the mall and made us pose in front of a man who shouldn’t have been within 500 yards of children. But those days are gone, and now Christmas sweaters are part of the over-the-top intentional irony that has come to plague much of modern life. Just kidding. Whether you’re attending an ugly Christmas party, or just want to embarrass your friends and family, here are a few ugly Christmas sweater ideas you can put to good use this holiday season. The Focus is on the…

Every year, we seem to have the same debate about Christmas ornaments. Do we make the tree look like it belongs in Macy’s, with expertly positioned ornaments and lights? Or do we give it some personality and make some funky ornaments that no one else will have? Usually we end up somewhere in the middle. And no matter which side of the fence your family’s on when it comes to ornaments, you can use these simple DIY ideas to create your own Christmas ornaments. Reindeer Thumbprint Ornaments via little bit funky These ornaments are great if you have children who want to get in on the…

Around this time every fall, we ask ourselves, “what kind of Christmas ornaments can we make this year?” Inevitably it came down to this: candy cane ornaments. We shall make you. For these simple ornaments, we used regular candy canes, jute, some hot glue and different ribbons and bells to add as “accent pieces,” if you want to put it that way. Jute Candy Cane Ornaments These are the easiest to make – simply wrap the jute around your candy cane and apply hot glue where it’s needed to keep the whole thing together. Keep the jute wraps tight on each other to…

What better way to prove to your friends, family and neighbors that you have “the most” Christmas spirit than by making your own outdoor decorations? Anyone can go to Walmart, Target, Kmart, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Michael’s, Hobby Lobby or Kohl’s to get their outdoor decor, but it takes a real Holiday Cheermeister to do it yourself. Here are 27 DIY outdoor Christmas decorations and ideas that can put you and your home into the holiday spirit in no time at all. DIY Outdoor Christmas Decor Things to Remember If it rains or snows a lot during the winter in your area,…

Prepping often involves a lot of gear, food, weapons and other things. But without physical health, ability to cooperate or good plans, the gear is almost useless. I think there is a certain pleasure in the material side of prepping. There is some kind of mental reward of collecting useful things and arranging them. Hopefully I never have to use my prepping stuff for other purposes than general wildlife but it’s a part of my prepping strategy to make use of the things I’ve gathered. But in a real situation I think there are several factors other than the actual gear that plays a…

I’ve bought some foldable water containers which are pretty cheap and have many uses. The containers are very portable when not filled and can be used to store 4 gallons / 15 litres of water. An important aspect of my prepping is that the gear should be used in other situations than catastrophes. Knives may be used for fishing and wildlife, bug out bags can be used when hiking or going on a bike ride and so on. So these foldable water containers fit perfectly into that philisophy. Perfect for a hike or to have some water in the car. They come pretty cheap and are much more portable than…

Recently my old knife gave up. It was a very cheap knife that served me well for a long time. This time instead of buying a new cheap knife I did some research and found the Mora Bushcraft. I don’t believe a total apocalypse is coming but it’s always a good idea to keep some gear for difficult times. Much of the gear targeted to preppers and survivalists is probably really overpriced and could be found elsewhere for less money and with higher quality. A knife is one such thing. There are a plethora of brands and models and it is hard for me (which has no overwhelming interest in…

Since my chili plants (part 1 and part 2) don’t require much attention besides watering I decided to extend my garden plant collection with chives. Chives is a nice herb and is commonly used in french and swedish cooking. Beside being easy to grow, it don’t loose much taste when you freeze the herb. When planting from seeds it seems that using small greenhouse is a common tip for success. In this case I found a package with seeds, planting soil and a plastic container that act as a greenhouse. So I began with planting the seeds about half an inch down in the soil. I…

It’s now been exactly three months since I planted the chili seeds. For a novice, the result is amazing! In my previous post, Planting chili from seeds pt. 1, I described how I used the chili seeds from last year to hopefully get some new plants this year. Most of the seeds resulted in a plant. It has now been three months since I planted the seeds and all plants are growing like crazy. As you can see, the plants are now flowering and I expect there will be some chili fruits pretty soon. Since I didn’t have enough pots for each plant I put two or more plants in some of the pots.

At eSpares we’re not one to blow our own trumpet, instead we like to shout about the success of you our lovely customers – and we’re not averse to letting others talk fondly of us. This is why it’s always a pleasure to read the Trustpilot reviews which you’ve left about us, even those which are less than satisfactory are beneficial, as it gives us scope to improve. Due to enjoying the praise of others, we’re pleased to announce that we have been featured in “Property & Home Magazine, with Phil Spencer” as a “Best Buy 2015”. As you’ll (hopefully) know, we’re the…

The BBQ is a staple of the traditional English summer and a great way for us to get back to our primal instincts and cook on an open fire. With summer now firmly here, many of us will be looking to engage in more BBQs with family and friends, but how do you choose the best BBQ for you? To give you a helping hand, we’ve covered many of the basics you’ll need to consider when it comes to purchasing a new BBQ, to ensure you get the perfect one for your needs and requirements, without breaking the bank. Charcoal vs. Gas – The Great Debate: The debate around charcoal or gas BBQ has long…

A product recall has been issued by Kidde Safety Europe Ltd after testing highlighted a potential issue with their fire blankets. The testing of the fire blankets has revealed the fire blankets failed to meet the safety standard required, with the tested fire blankets failing to prevent re-ignition of oil pan fires, containing 3 litres of oil. Following the results of the tests, a product recall has been initiated on a precautionary basis to ensure user safety. The fire blankets in question are: Sized 1m2 Branded “Kidde” or “Lifesaver” Include the Kitemark symbol and licence number…

A pressure washer is a great appliance to have in your cleaning arsenal due to it being versatile enough to be used to clean a range of things, including your car, garden furniture, patios / decking and the kitchen floor. But, to get the most out of your pressure washer and to ensure it works to its full potential for longer, regular maintenance is key. As such, we recommend each time you use yours you carry out the maintenance mentioned below... Before Using Your Pressure Washer: Before you begin using it there are a number of things you should do, these include... Checking the O-rings for…

Spin-to-Win with eSpares for your chance to win 1 of 10,000 mystery prizes. Our latest competition can be entered via our Facebook page, and is open for all to entire until Sunday July 26th 2015. Good Luck! How to Enter: You can enter the competition by clicking on the image above, where you will be taken to our Facebook page. Simply follow the instructions on the page to be in with a chance of winning. For full Terms & Conditions please Download our Terms and Conditions and Download our Privacy Policy

Now that we have our tools, materials and cuts done, we continue creating our beginner flower boxes with Part II - the assembly. The post DIY Flower Boxes Part II – Assembly appeared first on Amateur DIY.

Beautiful flower boxes that can be built relatively quickly with a more limited skillset and a modest set of tools. The post DIY Flower Boxes – A fun woodworking project for any skill level appeared first on Amateur DIY.

It goes for soldered connections just as much as clamped tubes or Sharkbites - the more it moves, the more prone it is to leaking. The post Plumbing Lesson – Always Support Your Pipes appeared first on Amateur DIY.

Two quick tips to fix and prevent wood splits, along with other woodworking, painting and even some plumbing tips that we've gathered over the past 2 weeks. The post DIY Tips Collection #2 – June 2015 appeared first on Amateur DIY.

We know that David Hasselhoff would pay a contractor to remove a shrub or bush from his yard but the rest of us usually take care of something like this ourselves. The post How to remove a shrub or bush – the easy way appeared first on Amateur DIY.